Without question, 2020 brought dramatic disruptions to how we live, work, and connect with one another. Too many of our family members and neighbors have been impacted by this [COVID-19] illness, and businesses that create our community’s unique vibrancy have been forced to close or lay off workers. Still, our community has shown incredible resilience in the face of such adversity.

As the year ended, I reflected with gratitude for how we came together for one another. When faced with seemingly insurmountable challenges and hardships, business and community leaders across Central New York responded with compassion and action. Businesses rapidly pivoted to provide critical resources — from hand sanitizer to rapid-testing solutions. Firms donated masks for frontline workers, small businesses adopted new operational models to continue serving customers and clients, and financial institutions and nonprofits developed grant programs to bridge funding gaps.

We were also called upon to face the glaring racial and socio-economic disparities and injustices that have divided us for too long. Business leaders rightfully came forward with words of solidarity and condemnation for acts of hate, discrimination, and injustice, but more importantly, with tangible acts of support. We have much more work to do to address these incredibly difficult issues. But with collective determination, leadership, and commitment to a shared vision for greater equity and prosperity for all, we can achieve our fullest potential as a community and region.

As we look to develop new strategies to rebuild and drive a more robust, inclusive, and resilient economy following last year’s unprecedented health, economic, and social-injustice crises, there is opportunity — even hope. Many projects seeded in recent years will be realized in 2021, including Amazon and the Salt City Market. Companies looking to grow, expand, and create jobs in Central New York have reached out for our assistance. We have seen significant interest from the business community in our new programming designed to provide resources, knowledge, and tools they need to actively drive diversity, equity, and inclusion in their workplaces.

There is even more reason for hope as the first vaccines have been delivered to our health-care professionals and most vulnerable populations. In the months ahead these vaccines, one of which was developed in part at Upstate Medical University, will help us return to the people, work, and activities we love and miss.

In the meantime, I urge you to support local businesses, practice safe social distancing, and seek ways to support one another. We may not know for sure how long this crisis will last, but I am confident better days are ahead. Until then, our resilience will enable us to overcome whatever challenges we face. It is that spirit that makes me proud to be a part of this community, and incredibly hopeful for our future.      

Robert M. Simpson is president and CEO of CenterState CEO, the primary economic-development organization for Central New York. This viewpoint is drawn and edited from the “CEO Focus” email newsletter that the organization sent to members on Dec. 31.

New Year’s resolutions are not only for individuals, but also for businesses. Company goals that leaders set for the year ahead are usually measured in data tied to categories like revenue production and expense reduction. 

 After a difficult 2020 due to COVID-19, many enterprises’ bottom-line numbers will take on extra importance in 2021. And business culture will be just as crucial. Any resolutions that company leaders make are an effective way to measure their work environment and help their teams to meet performance metrics.

Meeting individual, team, and company goals begin with employees and managers working well together in a vibrant environment. And given the changes and challenges of these times, culture and how leaders pay attention to it have never been more important. 

The bottom line falls into place when everyone is on the same page. But even if leaders have established a strong culture, it bears constant vigilance to ensure everyone is rowing in the same direction, especially now when a volatile world can threaten to throw even the most solid companies off course. 

Here are five business-culture resolutions for the New Year that leaders could consider. 

• Focus on shared values. I think it’s misleading to frequently state that a “family atmosphere” exists in a company. The bigger a business gets or the more it grows in capability and value, the less it’s going to feel like a family. Creative friction and disagreement on processes and concepts are inevitable. Smart companies leverage broader, shared values as common ground on which workers can connect. I have found that one of the best places for doing that is through service to the community beyond company walls. If your culture encourages people to work together for some greater good, they will continue to appreciate each other as humans and fellow workers. 

• Avoid prima donnas. Talented people are essential for a successful business, but don’t fall in love with gifted people if they are constantly letting you know how special they are. Watching them work can be breathtaking, but not when they’re the ones sucking the air out of the room.

• Double down on integrity. Large legacy companies are often loaded with people who are just taking up space and collecting a paycheck. It’s a significant issue, and it goes hand-in-hand with integrity. Effective workers know the difference between busywork and producing value. Everybody in the organization must be clear on what success looks like. The role of management is to be clear on objectives and then let people run.

• Don’t stop innovating. Many companies stagnate in this area and should learn how to expand their innovations while encouraging the cultivation of new ideas. Innovation is an amalgam of product marketing and product-management skills, of listening to the market, and of engineering people who can take a problem and figure out how to solve it. But innovation should apply in every direction — in how a company contracts, how it sells, and how it markets.

• Be the first to own mistakes. Anyone who has been involved in conflict directly knows there is always the sense that both parties have some responsibility. The sooner you own yours, the more likely the other person will own theirs — and the project can move forward.

New Year’s resolutions are often easily discarded because of a person’s lack of commitment. For business leaders and their workforce, they reflect company core values and can create or improve a culture that everyone will appreciate and aspire to uphold and deepen.      

Mark McClain (www.markmcclain.me), is author of “Joy and Success at Work: Building Organizations that Don’t Suck (the Life Out of People)” and CEO of SailPoint, a company in the enterprise identity management industry.